1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a reciprocating motion platform for oscillating a subject in a back and forth, headward to footward manner in order to externally add pulses to the fluid channels of the subject. The external addition of pulses caused by the periodic acceleration of the subject results in many therapeutic benefits.
2. Description of the Related Art
This application builds on the work previously done in this field by Non-Invasive Monitoring Systems, Inc., located at 1666 Kennedy Causeway, Suite 400 in North Bay Village, Fla., as exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,976 to Sackner et al. entitled “Reciprocating Movement Platform For Shifting Subject To and Fro in Headwards-Footwards Direction” (hereinafter referred to as the '976 patent), U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/967,422 (U.S. Patent Application Publication Serial No. 2002/0103454) filed by Dr. Marvin Sackner and D. Michael Inman, entitled “External Addition of Pulses To Fluid Channels Of Body To Release Or Suppress Endothelial Mediators And To Determine Effectiveness Of Such Intervention” (hereinafter referred to as the '454 publication), and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/439,957 (U.S. Patent Application Publication Serial No. 2003/0236476), filed by Dr. Marvin Sackner and D. Michael Inman, entitled “Reciprocating Movement Platform For The External Addition of Pulses of The Fluid Channels of a Subject”, (hereinafter referred to as the '957 application). All of the '976 patent, the '454 publication, and '957 application are hereby incorporated by reference.
Both the '976 patent and the '957 application describe reciprocating movement platforms which can be used in medical treatments based on the external addition of pulses, as well as various medical treatments based on the external addition of pulses. The '454 publication is directly mostly to medical treatments. Although the present application builds on these three works, it is not limited by them.
Although the three works are incorporated by reference, a description of one embodiment of a reciprocating movement platform in the '957 application is presented below to provide a background by which to understand the present invention. The placement of this description in the background section does not mean to suggest by any means that the applicant considers or admits that the '957 application is necessarily prior art to the present application. Its placement here is merely to demarcate the material disclosed in the '957 application from the new material described herein.
The '957 application described one embodiment of a reciprocating movement platform as shown in FIGS. 1, 4, 5, and 6. FIGS. 1, 4, 5, and 6 show a completely constructed reciprocating movement platform comprised of a mattress 101 for the subject to lie upon, a pillow 102 for the subject's head, a footboard frame 103 with cast shoes 104 attached in order to secure the subject, a mattress support 105 to hold the mattress 101 and to which the footboard frame 103 is attached, a box frame 800 which holds the drive machinery (or “drive”) 200 onto which the mattress support 105 is attached, bumpers 820 attached to the top and bottom of the box frame 800, and casters 830 at the four corners of the bottom of the box frame 800 for moving the reciprocating movement platform.
The entire reciprocating movement platform system (without patient, i.e., mattress 101 and mattress support 105, footboard support 105, box frame 800, and drive machinery 200) weighs between 400 and 500 lbs. The entire reciprocating movement platform system is 30″ wide, which is the standard width of a hospital gurney, so that it may be easily moved through doorways, semi-crowded offices, etc. The length of the entire system from bumper to bumper is 88″, which is as long as a standard twin or king size bed. The mattress 101 is 30″ above the floor, and the top of the footboard support 103 is 42″ above the floor.
The mattress support 105 secures the mattress 101 by means of Velcro strips. The mattress support 105 and footboard support 105 together weigh roughly 120 lbs. total. When assembled, the combined mattress support 105 and footboard support 105 are 30″ wide and 82″ long. The mattress 101 is 6″ thick, 30″ wide, 80″ long, and weighs approximately 30 lbs. The top 3″ of the mattress foam is the “visco-elastic” type foam for form-fitting comfort while the subject is on the platform. The mattress 101 can be designed to fold in half for easier transport and storage.
FIG. 7 shows the cast shoes 104 and the footboard frame 103 to which they are attached. The cast shoes 104 of the footboard frame 103 are the only means by which the subject is secured to the mattress support 105, and thus, is the means by which the subject is “pulsed” by the reciprocating platform. The two cast shoes 104 are rigidly attached by nuts and bolts to the footboard frame 103. Once the subject is lying on the mattress 101, he or she will put his or her feet (with shoes on) into the cast shoes 104 and then the cast shoes 104 will be secured around the shoes by a system of Velcro and straps and cloth. Experiments have shown that “one size fits many”, with the cast shoes 104 servicing most adults quite adequately due to the flexibility of the Velcro closure system. The feet may be fastened in the cast shoes 104 by other means, such as a ski boot-like apparatus, or another fastening means, such as a snap, a buckle, a lock, etc. connection.
The casters 830 on the bottom portion of the reciprocating movement platform are 6″ hospital bed casters with central locking features; these provide easy rolling and maneuvering, good ground clearance, easy locking (as shown by the brake petal), and an attractive appearance. The ground clearance is approximately 8″, which accommodates the use of equipment (such as hoists) to lift the reciprocating movement platform. The bumpers 820 make sure the reciprocating platform is not set too close to a wall by extending further out than the mattress support 105. The mattress support 105 is 82″ long and, when the platform is engaged in a reciprocating movement, has a range of movement of +/−2″. The bumpers 820 are built to extend 1″ beyond the furthest limit the mattress support 105 can travel so that the reciprocating movement platform will not be accidentally set too close to a wall where it might bump the wall during operation.
The drive machinery (or “drive”) 200 is enclosed within the box frame 800 and, as such, cannot be seen from the outside of the fully assembled movement platform. Supported by the box frame 800 and attached to the mattress support 105, the drive 200 provides the reciprocating movement of the device. The reciprocating (headwards-footwards) movement preferably has a rate of about 120-180 rpm with a force in the range of about +/−0.2 to about +/−0.3 g. The relationship between the parts can be seen in the exploded view of the reciprocating movement platform shown in FIG. 1. Starting from the top, the mattress 101 attaches to the mattress support 105 with Velcro strips, while the footboard frame 103 (with attached cast shoes 104) is bolted onto the mattress support 105. The mattress support 105 is securely attached to the drive 200. The drive 200 has four track wheels 232 located in the four top corners of the drive 200. These wheels 232 sit in four similarly placed tracks in the box frame 800. Hence, the drive 200, mattress support 105, and mattress 101 form one part of the assembled movement platform, and the only physical connection between this top part and the bottom box frame 800 is the four wheels 232 of the drive 200 sitting in the four tracks of the box frame 800.
When the drive 200, by means which will be discussed further below, moves within the box frame 800, the wheels 232 move within the tracks, which serve to both support the drive 200 and limit the reciprocating motion of the drive 200. The track 810 on top of the box frame 800 has rounded ends so that the wheel 232 of the drive 200 may only move a certain distance in either direction. The track is beveled so that the track wheel 232 of the drive 200 will rest naturally in the center of the track. The track is also located near the metal support struts of the box frame 800 which thus transfer the weight of the drive 200 (and the attached mattress support 105, mattress 101, and subject) directly down to the caster 830 in the corner below.
The box frame 800 weighs about 120 lbs. and serves at least the following five purposes: 1) supporting the rest of the platform (the drive 200, mattress support 105, mattress 101, and subject); 2) providing a foundation that can be moved or anchored by means of the casters 830; 3) maintaining an adequate distance from surrounding walls by means of its bumpers 820; (4) carrying the system electronics; and (5) encasing the drive 200 for safety and noise reduction. In addition, the box frame 800 provides ground clearance for the hoist legs.
The drive 200 weighs 200 lbs and is 24″ wide. The displacement modules in the drive 200 take the form of two pairs of rotating counterweights, connecting belts, pulleys, springs, and motors. FIGS. 2A and 2B are drawings of a side view and a top view, respectively, of the drive 200 and its various mechanisms. In FIGS. 2A and 2B, the two pairs of drive weights 215A & 215B and 225A & 225B are shown attached to their respective horizontal shafts 210 and 220. These shafts are attached by means of struts to the frame of the drive 200. The four track wheels 232 can be seen in FIGS. 2A-2B. There are two motors, the drive rotation motor 1700 which drives the drive weights and a linear displacement motor 260 which sets the phase difference between the two pairs of drive weights. The drive rotation motor 1700 is a 180VDC ½ hp 0-1750 RPM motor, although only 1/10 hp is actually used. The linear displacement motor 260 is a 9″ per minute 400 lb. 110VAC linear displacer with 12″ of travel.
The movement of counterweights 215A and 215B as seen from above is shown in FIGS. 3A-E. In FIG. 3A, the centers of gravity of both drive weights 215A and 215B are on the same line 401 from center drive shaft 210. As center drive shaft 210 continues to rotate in FIG. 3B, drive weights 215A and 215B continue their rotations in opposite directions: drive weight 215A in a clockwise direction, drive weight 215B in a counter-clockwise direction. In FIG. 3C, the drive weights have moved into positions opposite each other. This is beneficial because the force of the two drive weights are also in opposite directions and thus, negate each other's effect. The rotation continues in FIG. 3D and then the drive weights end up adding the force of their weights in the same direction in FIG. 3E. FIGS. 3A-E show how the motion of the drive weights moves the drive 200 up and down the box frame tracks (i.e., headwards and footwards for a subject on the mattress 101), but not sideways within the box frame 800. If FIG. 3A is the position which causes the headward movement, FIG. 3C is the position which negates any movement, and FIG. 3E causes the footward movement.
As can be seen in FIGS. 2A-2B and 3A-3E, the drive weights are of unequal size. This is because the weights are located at different distances from the center of drive shaft 210. If the drive weights were the same mass, their effects would not be balanced and the drive 200 would rock sideways in the box frame 800. However, if drive weight 215B is a predetermined amount of mass less than drive weight 215A, the effect of the drive weights when rotating in opposite directions will cancel each other out. Because of this arrangement, the drive weights are in the same horizontal plane as shown in FIG. 2, which greatly reduces any shimmy effect that was produced in previous platform versions which had their drive weights in different horizontal planes. The outer edge of drive weight 215A is 12″ from drive shaft 210 and this outer edge travels past the very outside edge of the drive itself when rotating.
FIG. 2B shows the pulley system with drive belt 370 and the phase control belt 380. The drive belt 370 runs from drive rotation motor 1700 to drive shaft 210 and provides the power to rotate drive weights 215A and 215B around drive shaft 210 and indirectly provides the power to rotate drive weights 225A and 225B around shaft 220. Drive belt 370 is a ¾″ L pitch timing belt, although a timing belt is not required in this position. Because of the size of the wheel around drive shaft 210 which is driven by drive belt 370 in comparison to the size of rotation shaft, there is a 5:1 speed reduction from the drive rotation motor 1700 to the actual rotational speed of the drive weights.
Phase control belt 380 runs around four pulley wheels of equal size: a release pulley wheel, a drive shaft pulley wheel, secondary shaft pulley wheel, and a linear displacement pulley wheel. Because it is also attached to drive shaft 210, the drive pulley wheel drives the phase control belt. Secondary shaft pulley wheel receives the power to rotate the drive weights around shaft 220 from the drive shaft pulley wheel through phase control belt 380. The release pulley wheel provides required tension for phase control belt 380, and can also be used to release the tension on phase control belt 380 in order that phase control belt 380 can be taken off for repair or transport. Linear displacement pulley wheel can be moved in position up and down linear shaft under the control of linear displacement motor 260. It is by this means that the relative phases of the two pairs of drive weights are controlled.
The drive weights around each shaft make the same movements as shown in FIGS. 3A-3E. However, one pair of drive weights can be moved in and out of phase with the other pair of drive weights. The two pairs of drive weights are in phase when they are in the same rotational positions at the same time. Both pairs would look like FIG. 3A at the same time, like FIG. 3B at the same time, etc. The two pairs are out of phase when they are not in the same rotational positions at the same time. For instance, drive weights 215A & 215B might be in the position shown in FIG. 3A, while drive weights 225A & 225B might be in the positions shown in FIG. 3B. In that case, they would be 45° out of phase with each other. Although the sideways forces of these out-of-phase pairs of drive weights would still cancel themselves out (and thus not produce a rocking effect in the movement platform), the force produced in the headwards-footwards directions would lessen in comparison to when the pairs of drive weights are in phase.
The relative phases of the pairs of drive weights are controlled by the linear displacement motor 360, which controls the pulley system. The speed of rotation of the pairs of drive weights are controlled by increasing or decreasing the speed of the drive rotation motor 1700. Thus, one can control both the speed of the headwards-footwards movement (by increasing or decreasing the speed of the drive rotation motor 1700) and the force applied by the headwards-footwards movement (by moving the pairs of drive weights in and out of phase with each other through linear displacement pulley wheel under the control of linear displacement motor 360). In its simplest form, the control electronics of the present invention merely control these two variables in order to get the desired effect on the subject (as described, for example, in the '962 patent, the '454 publication, and the '957 application). A handheld controller with a communication link to the control electronics of the drive 200 may be used by the health care provider or the subject him- or herself, Readings of the speed and peak acceleration could also be available. The control electronics also incorporate a “patient stop switch” which may be given to the subject to hold. The motors would stop whenever the switch was activated.
Although this reciprocating movement platform is well designed for providing a wide range of controlled motions to a subject on it, it is fairly heavy, and, as such, may not be appropriate for usage in the more. Thus, there is a need for a reciprocating movement platform with reduced weight.